Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Monday, October 13, 2008

Some of you know I am huge fan of The Grocery Game and so is the BOY! Every week he asks when we are going "gaming." And you thought he was talking about video games! I heard about it last spring from the Man (who heard it from another man on The River Radio station), and decided to give the 4-week $1 trial a shot. I will start posting pics of my "stash" and my savings so you too will be convinced.

The first few weeks were a bit confusing, but after I got the hang of things I decided to keep going. Before GG, I "played" at being a coupon shopper, and truly thought I was getting the best prices at Walmart Supercenter or Aldis. Boy was I WRONG! That is exactly what Big-Box discount retailers want you to think, and their marketing is very effective at convincing you of just that.If you have never heard of The Grocery Game, here is a quick explanation from their website:

The Grocery Game is a website that can save you hundreds of dollars on grocery bill each month. Log in, spend a few minutes with a pair of scissors, and you're off to win The Grocery Game!

When you play, you'll get a weekly list (called Teri's List) of the lowest-priced products at your supermarket matched with manufacturers' coupons and weekly specials -- advertised and unadvertised. The Grocery Game does all the hard work and research, and presents it to you in a straightforward format.Why can't I just do this on my own?Coupon pros spend hours preparing to shop. They research ads and match their coupons to sales, only to discover twice as many un-advertised sales once they get to the store. More hours are spent standing in the aisles sifting through their files for coupons to match those sales.

Members of The Grocery Game eliminate those time-consuming hours and usually save even more than the coupon pros. For example, just because an item is on sale doesn't mean its time to play your coupon. Our databases track the sales history on nearly every item in the supermarket, waiting to use a coupon on rock-bottom sales. Now, the best possible savings are quickly accessible to busy professionals, overworked moms, single adults or anyone who wants to cut their grocery bill by 50% or even more.

I do realize that GG is not for everyone, but it certainly works for me! Let's see if I can overcome some objections I have heard:

"I don't have time to shop this way".Baloney! I have a full time job, a kid, 3 chickens, 2 dogs, homeschool, a full "extra schedule", and a husband. You can make time if you truly want to save money. Watch one less TV show per week and replace it with couponing. I actually use my "TV time" to clip coupons.

"I am not organized enough to be a coupon shopper". Have you seen my house?!? Organized and Rea are not found in the same sentence! But my coupons are organized, and that makes me smile. I feel like I have control over one small part of the organized chaos that is my home. It has actually motivated me to get other areas of my life in order as well."

"I don't usually buy what is on the list".Do you buy toilet paper? Cheese? Yogurt? Soup? Cereal? I thought so. There are also usually many convenience snack items on the list. If you are super frugal and cook mostly from scratch, the list is probably not for you. But, if you are a busy mom like me, those items are a necessity.

"I don't have room to stockpile". I have carefully found ways to store my bargains for future use. You probably have some clutter lying around you never use anyway, so get rid of it and stock up on things you WILL actually use!

"I feel guilty paying so little for so much". REALLY??Get over it. Retailers and manufacturers would not give us coupons if they actually hurt their bottom line. Every store get reimbursed for every coupon accepted, plus a handling fee. Also, the vast majority of Americans don't shop with coupons, so why not put them to good use? Millions of coupons get thrown away every week, what a shame.

"I prefer one-stop shopping."I understand this one all too well. The problem with one-stop shopping for me (usually at Target) was all the extra impulse buys that were adding up. Now, I stick to the list, get in and get out. My spending has dropped tremendously, and I am much less impulsive in a grocery store.

If you want to throw any other objections my way, I am all ears.Here are some of my tips for using the GG:

Don't sign up for too many stores, or you will get overwhelmed. Two or three should be plenty to get you started.

Print your lists on Saturday night, circle the coupons you need, and check each one off as you find it.

Head to the store with nothing but your list and your coupon holder. Leave kids at home if possible. Stick only to the list for the most savings!

Still not convinced? Try it for 4-weeks, it's only a dollar. You can cancel anytime, without hassle.

Please email me for an invitation, or sign up directly using Rickki@homestead.com as your referral source, if you don't mind.I would love everyone's feedback! Have you tried the Grocery Game?

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

All Summer the Boy and his friend CC have been catching toads (and crickets to feed them). Today while we were walking in the yard, he found an actual frog! He played with him for about an hour and then let it go in the creek on the side of our yard.

The birdies have gotten to almost their full size, which is about 7 pounds. Their feet are very strong and sharp. They are less tame now, but still come for their food. Whenever we open the top of the tractor to fill their feeder and water, they fly up and perch on the cross bars. We've been moving the tractor about every 3rd day, and the first places we had them have beautiful new grass. I even saw an article on Yahoo about how Kansas farmers are trucking in chicken "litter" from Oklahoma for their fields because nitogen fertilizer is really expensive and the litter is extremely high in nitrogen! It will be great for the compost heap!"Here, Buffy!"

Our pretty girls! The dogs like to play with them too! And actually the birds run to the tractor when the dogs come out. Kristl puts her nose up to the wire and gets pecked at least once a week. It's quite a show because then she gets in the play pounce stance and "talks" (which is a funny howl actually)